


She's no Atlas

by MajorMinorMusicality



Series: Another Stolen Relic [2]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Badass Reader, Dad!Coulson, F/M, Half-Asgardian Reader, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2018-11-07 06:43:34
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 19,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11053479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MajorMinorMusicality/pseuds/MajorMinorMusicality
Summary: You're Coulson's adopted daughter, and are a part of the Avengers Initiative.Life gets more complicated as it goes on.





	1. First Meetings

She was far too young. She had a family, people she loved endlessly. Her eyes once held so much hope. You should’ve seen the way she smiled before they laid the world on her shoulders. And now suddenly, everything she touches dies. **She’s no Atlas**. She’ll die trying to carry the weight of the world, it’s too heavy for a child like her. “Child? She’s seen more wars than you’ve seen fights. -The Hanging Girl by Jussie Adler-Olsen

* * *

Clint Barton was the epitome of the human train wreck. The man was constantly in some kind of trouble, and somehow you had gotten pulled into his latest bout of trouble. Somehow, Clint had angered the Russian Mob that frequented the neighborhood he lived in. You were pretty sure it had something to do with his dog that he hadn’t had a few days earlier.

You ducked as one of the mob guys tried to punch you. You fought back, landing a punch to his gut that sent him flying back into the side of the creepy van they had all arrived in. You straightened your stance, blowing a lock of hair out of your face. You turned, seeing Clint going one on one with a much bigger mob guy. You went to help, but your phone rang and distracted you.

The number on the screen made you freeze, wondering why Coulson was calling you at such a late hour on one of your rare days off from work.

“Hello?” You answered, watching as Clint continued to fight.

“ _(Y/N), do you remember when I asked you to be at my place at seven on the dot?”_ You father growled, sounding very annoyed with you.

You paused, trying to recall when he had asked that. You faintly remembered him mentioning-

“Oh!” You gasped. “I was supposed to meet your girlfriend tonight!”

" _And it’s now ten o’ clock and you_ still _aren’t here._ ”

“I’m on my way,” You promised.

“What?” Clint blanched at you, only to get a fist to the jaw that sent him stumbling back. He charged the big guy, tackling him to the ground. “(Y/N), you can’t just _leave_ me here!”

“Sorry, but it looks like you’ve got this handled, Clint.” You replied, rushing over and landing a kick to the big guy’s head that knocked him out cold. “See? You’re all good, I gotta go.”

 _“Barton is a bad influence on you_.” Coulson muttered over the phone as you got into your car. You started up the engine, speeding off for your father’s house on the nicer side of Brooklyn.

“You say that about all of my friends.” You smirked.

 _"Because you make friends with assassins and former hired guns._ ” Coulson growled.

“Aren’t those the same things?” You pointed out as you swerved around a corner.

“ _I-_ “ Coulson let out an annoyed sigh. _“At least tell me you’re driving safe?”_

“Uh…” You winced as you swerved around another corner, narrowly missing a couple sucking face on the corner. You heard them shouting rude things in your direction, but their voices were soon gone thanks to you speeding. “Yeah, totally.” You lied. “Hey, I’m parking now.”

 _“Make sure you don’t look like you were just in some back-alley street fight, alright_?” Coulson sighed before hanging up.

You flipped down your visor, checking your reflection. Your hair was incredibly disheveled, and you managed to make yourself look less feral by pulling your hair back into a ponytail. You slid out of your car after cutting the engine, tucking your keys into your pocket as you smoothed down your clothes. Thankfully, nothing had been ripped during the fight.

You hit the buzzer for Coulson’s apartment, and he buzzed you in immediately. You rushed up the stairs, taking two at a time until you got to the fourth floor. You skid to a halt at your father’s front door, taking a moment to smooth your clothes down one more time before knocking.

The door opened, and Coulson looked you over to make sure you were presentable before he let you inside. You hung you jacket on the coat rack as you stepped inside the apartment.

“I’m so sorry, dad, really.” You apologized again.

“You have the best focus during a mission, but as soon as your back in your civilian clothes, you get scatter-brained.” Coulson shook his head as he gave you a hug. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Still waiting for you to figure that out.” You quipped, and he rolled his eyes. “So, where is she?”

“Oh, is this her?”

You turned, seeing a very pretty woman with auburn hair. She gave you a warm smile, holding out her arms for a hug. You went in for the hug, then took a step back. Audrey Nathan looked you over, then smiled at Coulson.

“You’re right, she is pretty.”

“Oh,” You grinned at your father. “You said I was pretty?”

“Very pretty,” Coulson deadpanned, rolling his eyes before he looked to Audrey. “Audrey, this is my daughter, (Y/N).”

“It’s so nice to finally meet you.” Audrey grinned. “Phil speaks very highly of you. Especially your artistic talents! He says you’re a painter?”

“Um, yeah, I am.” You replied nervously. It was odd to meet your father’s girlfriend. Coulson hadn’t done much dating when you were a kid, and now that you were an adult and living your own life, it seemed your father was out living his a bit more successfully than you were. It kind of stung you father had a love life when your own love life was very…well, non-existent.

“She actually painted the piece hanging over my couch.” Coulson stated as he led you and Audrey to the living room. Hanging above the sleek black couch was a painting you had done back in high-school. It was a colorful piece, and it was a good contrast to the sleek, modern look of Coulson’s living room.

“This is amazing,” Audrey grinned at you after appraising the painting. “You think I could commission you for something?”

You blinked, “Um…sure, but my schedule is kind of tricky. I don’t know when I could get it to you.”

“Right,” Audrey nodded. “Phil said you were in the same line of work as him…”

You looked to Coulson, knowing that he hadn’t exactly told his girlfriend he worked for SHIELD. It was classified information, and so was your job with the same agency. Coulson had more than likely hinted at what the two of you did for a living.

“I’ll make you something, free of charge.” You offered.

“No,” Audrey shook her head. “I don’t feel right just taking something like that from you. I’ll pay whatever you think is fit.”

“If I charge you, my dad might get a little mad.” You chuckled, and Audrey laughed.

“Alright, but nothing too big, alright?” Audrey smiled fondly at Coulson. “Don’t be so tough on the girl, Phil. Let her be a free spirit.”

You grinned, elbowing your father. “I like her.”

* * *

Your first meeting with your father’s first serious girlfriend in years was cut short by a call from Fury. You felt bad that you had to leave, but Audrey seemed very understanding about the importance of your job and Coulson’s job. Coulson apologized profusely before you both managed to leave.

You changed into your SHIELD uniform on the flight, and Coulson was still in his same suit. He had a bummed out look on his face as you joined him in the cabin. You sat across from him, and he gave you a tight smile.

“You okay?” You asked, a worried furrow to your brow.

He was silent as he slid a tablet across the small table between you. You picked it up, swiping through the photos and the SHIELD files downloaded onto it. The more you read, the more you felt like your heart was going to stutter to a complete stop.

“This…” You swallowed nervously as you looked at your father. “There’s another 0-8-4 in New Mexico?”

“From the designs burned into the ground, it seems that whatever it is, it’s from the same place you’re from.” Coulson replied quietly. You now understood the nervous look in his eyes.

You were both going back to the desert you had been found in all those years ago. The place where you had started out life on this planet, the place where you had been taken in by Coulson. You felt a faint spark of fear in you. The thought of finding answers about where you were from was…well, it was startling to say the least.

You had come to terms with the fact that you would probably never find out where you were from, or why you had been sent to Earth. Now, there was the chance at getting answers, and you weren’t sure you wanted them.

“Oh,” You murmured, setting the tablet down.

“You okay?” Coulson asked, his voice full of concern. He watched you carefully, knowing that the circumstances of your adoption had always been a touchy subject that both of you preferred not to discuss. It just brought up a lot of pain on both ends.

“I’m fine…I guess.” You mumbled as you looked out the window. “We’ll just have to see what’s in store for us in New Mexico.”


	2. Thor

The 0-8-4 turned out to be some kind of hammer and not another baby. You were relieved by that, not wanting another kid to go through what you did.

The hammer was definitely odd. It reminded you of the kind of hammer used in historical paintings of blacksmiths, but this one had an air of regality to it. There were Celtic symbols engraved into the silver metal, and the handle was wrapped in a very fine leather with a leather wrist strap dangling off the end of it. The hammer also seemed to radiate a power that you could feel down to your bones.

“So, no one can move this thing?” You asked curiously as you stopped circling the 0-8-4.

“No one, no _thing_ ,” Coulson sighed, looking annoyed. “We thought you might be able to move it since you both come from the same place.”

“Yeah,” You muttered, not sure how to feel about the fact that you and some weird hammer were from the same planet. “I’ll give it a shot.”

You grabbed the hammer, pulling hard. It didn’t budge. Even when you grabbed it with both hands and braced your feet against the dirt pillar under it, it still didn’t move. You grunted with effort, straining as you tried to move it.

“Alright, this isn’t working.” Coulson stated, and you let go of the hammer. You were incredibly annoyed that you couldn’t move it. You could lift the front half of a _car_ , but a hammer was the one thing you couldn’t move. It was seriously pissing you off.

“Sorry,” You muttered, looking at Coulson. “What do we do now?”

“We guard it until SHIELD can find a way to transport it away from here and to a more secure facility-“

The walkie-talkie on Coulson’s hip chirped, and he quickly answered it. The man on the other end sounded slightly panicked as he told Coulson about a civilian who had broken in.

“I need eyes up high, with a gun.” Coulson ordered. He then looked at you. “Do what you have to, agent.”

You nodded, taking off running towards the chaos you could clearly hear over the rain. You ran down three hallways, took two left turns, and slammed right into a huge, hulking mass that was a blond guy with a wild expression in his eyes.

He pushed you into the wall with a lot more strength than you were used to having used on you. People weren’t usually this strong, and that sent you on high alert. This guy must be part of the Index with strength like that.

You ran after him, finding that your speed from your enhanced muscles was barely helping you catch up to this guy. Thankfully, he was stalled by a set of stairs by a few other agents he easily took down. You took the opportunity to jump onto him. You wrapped your thighs around his head, twisting your body just like Natasha had taught you to do.

The guy stumbled, falling to the ground. You rolled to your feet, glaring at the large man. He gave you a smug smirk.

“Stand down!” You ordered, hand inching to the gun on your hip.

“You will not give orders to the Son of Odin!” The man roared, then charged at you. He slammed his shoulder into your chest, sending you flying backwards and into a metal wall. You grunted in pain, sliding to the ground as he took off running. You forced yourself to your feet, running after him while putting a hand to your ear.

"Sir, I think he might be enhanced.” You announced to Coulson via the com.

 _“Stop him, agent!_ ” Coulson ordered.

“What the hell does he think I’m doing?” You muttered to yourself as you chased after the large man who was much stronger than you.

Finally, you caught up to the guy. He was standing in the main entrance to where the 0-8-4 was sitting in the middle of a torrential downpour. You charged, tackling him through the plastic tarp that made up the wall on this level of the facility. Both of you grunted as you slammed into the mud. You were quickly soaked by the rain, as was the guy you were now grappling in the mud with.

“You are good!” The man grunted as you kneed him in the gut.

“Thanks,” You replied, flipping the two of you so you were on top. You cocked your arm back, but as you went to throw the punch, he caught your fist.

“But I am better.” He growled. He then bucked his hips and threw you off of him. You slammed into the mud once again, rolling across it. You managed to roll to your feet, sliding in the mud for a brief second before charging him again.

“What the hell are you?” You hissed as you grabbed him around the waist. You lifted him up, bending backwards and slamming his head into the mud. You let go of him, and he fell onto his stomach with a groan.

“I am Thor!” He snarled. “Son of Odin, Crown Prince of Asgard! You will not stand between me and Mjolnir!”

“Mjolnir?” You frowned. “Is that what that thing’s called? Can you lift it?”

“I am the only one who can!”

You sighed, putting a hand to your ear, “Sir, I think we should let him try to lift it.”

“ _I wasn’t aware you’re the one who gave orders around here, Agent Carter._ ”

You rolled your eyes, “Sir, I’m just saying we should let him try.”

Coulson sighed, _“Fine, but if he can’t, you better subdue him._ ”

“I’m gonna do more than subdue him.” You muttered, wiping mud off of your cheek. You looked to Thor. “We’re gonna give you a chance to lift it, big guy.”

“As you should,” Thor growled, stomping towards the facility you had tackled him out of.

“Wow, great manners.” You grumbled as you followed him. He ripped back a piece of the plastic tarp, revealing the hammer still sitting on its dirt pedestal. It was now soaked from the rain, just like you were. Of course, the hammer wasn’t also coated in mud and what you assumed to be blood from the warmth you felt on your cheek.

Thor walked over to the hammer, a smug look on his face as he gripped the leather handle. You watched, wondering if the guy was really able to pick up the hammer that seemed impossible to lift. You watched with baited breath as Thor pulled. His smug look fell into one of complete shock as he used both hands to try and lift the hammer.

He looked up at the sky and let out a loud roar of pain as he fell to his knees.

" _Bring him in, Carter._ ” Coulson ordered quietly over the coms.

You walked forward, putting a hand on Thor’s shoulder. “Good try, but now I have to take you in.”

“It does not matter what you do with me.” Thor muttered as he got to his feet. He allowed you to lead him away to one of the interrogation rooms set up in the makeshift SHIELD facility. “I can no longer wield Mjolnir, I am not worthy.”

You could feel curiosity gnawing at you. If this guy knew what the hammer was called, that meant he was from the same place as the hammer. The same place _you_ were from.

“Where are you from?” You asked as you led him through the halls.

“I am of Asgard,” He replied quietly. “I was unfairly banished by my father, Odin.”

“Asgard?” You asked quietly. “Is…Is that a different planet?”

“Aye,” Thor nodded. “You seem very curious about it, my lady.”

You were silent, leading him to a small room so he could be questioned.

* * *

You sat in the medical wing of the facility, an annoyed scowl on your face. You had cleaned yourself up from the muddy fight with the man who called himself Thor. You had a gash on your cheek from your face hitting a rock hidden in the mud. Coulson had ordered you to get it stitched up, much to your annoyance. In an hour or so, the gash would be scabbed over, and by morning you would only have a faint line-- if anything.

But Coulson was overprotective, and ordered you to the med bay.

“That cut looks rather painful.”

You looked up, seeing a SHIELD doctor strolling in. His hair was dark, and unusually long for someone in his position. You were used to the male SHIELD doctors having shorter hair. The doctor’s vivid green eyes inspected the cut, tilting your chin to the side with slender fingers so he could get a better look.

“I’ve had worse.” You shrugged.

“I see that you’re healing quickly…Agent Carter, is it?” He looked at the tablet in his hands. “Your records say you’re a…super-soldier?”

“That’s me,” You lied. You were classified as a super-soldier, but only the higher-ups in SHIELD knew about your true abilities. “So, are you gonna stitch me up, Doc?”

He chuckled, “I believe you will heal just fine without any stitches, Agent Carter. Now, might I ask about the large fellow who barged in earlier?”

“He’s the reason I got covered in mud and smashed my cheekbone against a rock.” You muttered as you got to your feet. You paused, noticing a low fire in the doctor’s green eyes. “So, am I good to go…?”

“Oh, yes.” He nodded, that anger still present in his eyes. “Do be careful, won’t you?”

You snorted, “Right. In this job?”

* * *

Coulson was at a loss. His interrogation of Thor had led to Coulson showing the hulking blond your files. He wanted answers, and Thor was the only person from…whatever planet he was from who could give them to him.

To his utter astonishment, he found that Thor recognized the bracelet that had been on your wrist when you were first found.

"She is of Asgard.” Thor picked up the delicate bracelet in his large hands. “I cannot believe she survived.”

Coulson froze, anger flooding him. “You sent her to this planet…to _die_?”

“I did not send her here,” Thor replied calmly, handing back the bracelet. “The All-Father sent her to this planet. He would not allow a prince to raise a halfling.”

Coulson blinked, “Prince…? Are you saying that (Y/N)’s father is a _prince_?”

 “I know not of her father,” Thor answered. “Loki has the ability to change genders at will, thus he is her mother.”

Coulson scrubbed a hand across his face. This was too much to wrap his head around. Your mother was actually a guy? And not just _any guy_ , a _prince_ of an entire _planet_. He scowled at Thor, pocketing the bracelet.

“She was sent here to die because she was a—what did you call it? A halfling?”

“Her mother was of Asgard, and of noble blood.” Thor shrugged. “As for her father, all I know is that he is of Midgard.”

“Midgard?”

“I believe you call it Earth.” Thor explained.

“Agent Coulson?”

Coulson turned, seeing you in the doorway. The gash on your cheek hadn’t been stitched, but it didn’t seem to need it anymore. He put on a stoic face, not wanting you to be worried.

“Agent Carter, what is it?”

“It appears that Dr. Selvig has…identification for him.” Your eyes darted to Thor, then back to Coulson. “We’re waiting for your call.”

Coulson nodded, following you out of the room. Guilt washed over him, but he knew he needed time to figure out how to explain to you why you were sent to Earth.

* * *

The readings had brought you back to the spot in the desert that Thor had appeared. The clouds overhead were swirling menacingly, and you took in a steadying breath. Whatever— _whoever_ —was coming to Earth would definitely be powerful, and you might be the only person to hold your own against them.

The symbol on the ground was identical to the one found around you all those years ago, and the same as the one found earlier from when Thor had made an appearance. Coulson kneeled down next to it, his fingers brushing across the mark.

“Any idea what this says?” Coulson looked up at you.

You pushed your sunglasses up onto your head, focusing on the symbol burned into the ground. You recognized it from the photos from when it had been you who had been sent to Earth, but it was hard to understand what it meant. Your ability to read any language wasn’t helping you in the slightest. 

“It’s not a language,” You stated, putting your sunglasses back over your eyes. “I think it’s more of a symbolic thing than anything else, sir.”

Storm clouds began to form overhead, and you frowned up at the sky. Thunder boomed and lighting cracked across the clouds as they began to swirl overhead.

A beam of light shot out of the clouds, slamming into the ground and burning strange symbols into the ground. You shielded your eyes from the light and the dirt whipping through the air. Once the wind stopped, you looked up at the…the _thing_ that appeared in the desert.

It was huge. Towering over the agents around it. The thing was made of metal plates, and it seemed to be studying the group of SHIELD agents pointing weapons at it.

“Is that one of Stark’s?” Sitwell asked as they all stared at the giant.

“I don’t know,” Coulson muttered, sounding annoyed. He took the bullhorn from Sitwell as he stepped out from behind the car you, him, and Sitwell had taken cover behind. “Stark never tells me anything.” He put the bullhorn to his lips and began to speak to the giant. “Hello. You are using unregistered weapons technology. Identify yourself.”

The giant stopped moving, looking as if it were studying the people below it.

“Here we go.” Coulson sighed.

The giant’s helmet seemed to ripple open, and a light began to shine where its face should be. You heart stuttered in fear, and you shot forward. You tackled Coulson out of the line of fire, a blast of energy hitting the SUV behind you both. You and Coulson rolled across the dirt, and you looked up to see the giant had fired off more blasts, taking out a few agents and most of the vehicles.

“Shit,” You hissed as you got to your feet. You grabbed Coulson’s hand and hauled him to his feet. “It’s going after Thor.”

“That’s what I was thinking.” Coulson muttered.

The giant then began stomping towards the town, taking long strides that would get it to town quickly.

The two of you raced towards an SUV, and you jumped into the driver’s seat while Coulson climbed into the passenger seat. You gunned the engine, speeding off after the giant.

“We need to come up with a plan.” Coulson stated as you forced the SUV to go faster. “You also need a seatbelt.”

“We’re chasing a giant metal monster and you’re worried about a seatbelt?” You muttered, swerving around a crushed billboard.

“I’m always worried about your safety!” He snapped. “Now, we can’t just go fighting some giant monster from another planet without a plan, (Y/N).”

“I have a plan, attack.” You growled, the pedal hitting the floorboard. The SUV still wasn’t fast enough to catch up with the monster as it got closer to the small town. “I finally found someone with answers, and I’m not about to let him get killed!”

“I’m not letting you get killed in the process.” Coulson hissed.

“Give me _some_ credit, dad.” You rolled your eyes. “I’ve been doing pretty good at not dying these past few years.”

“I’d like to keep it that way.” He muttered, grabbing the handle above him as you swerved around more debris. You gaped out the window of the car, seeing a large funnel cloud was stuck in the middle of town. Lightning crackled violently inside of it, and you forced the car to go faster.

The storm clouds dispersed, and large pieces of metal fell from the sky and slammed into the streets. You slammed on the brakes, the car swerving to the side. You jumped out as Coulson did, both of you making your way to the group of people standing there. There were four people in strange armor, and Thor was also dressed in strange armor with a flowing red cape.

“Excuse me!” Coulson called out as you both made your way over. He walked straight to Thor. “Donald.” He greeted. “I don’t think you’re being completely honest with me.”

“Know this, Son of Coul, you and I- We fight for the same cause.” Thor stated. “Protection of this world. From this day forward, you can count me as your ally— _If_ you return the items you have taken from Jane.”

“It’s _stolen_.”

“Borrowed,” Coulson corrected her. He sighed in defeat. “Of course you can have your equipment back. You’re going to need it to continue your research.” Jane nodded smugly.

“What the hell was that thing, anyway?” You asked. “The giant metal guy?”

“It is called the Destroyer,” Thor stated. “And it will not be a problem anymore.” He turned to Jane. “Would you like to see the bridge we spoke of?”

Jane grinned, “Sure.”

Thor smirked, wrapping an arm around her waist. He hurled his hammer upwards, and they both went flying.

“Wait! I need to debrief…you…” Coulson scowled up at the sky, then turned to you. “That was rude.”

“He’s just excited he got his new toy back.” You replied as you headed back for the car. “We should get going, everyone pile in.”  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We'll be meeting Steve in the next chapter!
> 
> \--
> 
> Comments are always appreciated!


	3. New Neighbor

It was raining in Brooklyn. You rushed down the sidewalk towards your building. It wasn’t as nice a building as the one Coulson lived in, but it was nice enough and you paid for it on your own. Finally, you made it to cover under the awning.

You realized you had made a big mistake when you attempted to reach for your keys in your pocket. You had just come back from the art supply store nearby, and were loaded down with two large canvases, and three bags full of art supplies to replenish your scarce supplies at home.

It was like the universe just wanted to make your week worse.

You thought back to the plane ride to New York from New Mexico, recalling Coulson doing his best to explain where you were from. It had been hard to hear. You now knew your biological family had just left you in a desert to die, and somewhere on Earth you had a biological father you had never known.

You pushed aside the thoughts on your biological parents, opting to figure out a way to fish out your keys without setting down any of your things so they could get wet.

“Great job, (Y/N).” You muttered to yourself, trying to adjust the supplies in your arms so you could dig your keys out of your pocket. You almost dropped the canvases, and groaned in annoyance.

“Ma’am, do you need help?”

You turned, eyes rounding slightly as you saw a very, _very_ handsome man under an umbrella. He dressed… _older_ , in a pair of khakis and a plaid button up. Your eyes darted to his thick forearms, then back up to his face. His blonde hair was neatly styled, and his sky-blue eyes were watching you as he waited for an answer.

“Um…” You replied dumbly.

You felt as if you were staring at the David by Michelangelo. He was _that_ sculpted and you felt incredibly small in front of him.

“Ma’am?” He now had a worried furrow to his eyebrows.

You blinked rapidly, coming to your senses. “Um, right! Yeah, I could use some help if you don’t mind.”

He chuckled, “I don’t mind.” He took the canvases from you, along with the bags. You stared up at him, wondering why he seemed so _familiar_. Maybe because he was so chiseled, he kept reminding you of sculptures you had studied before.

You fished your keys out of your pocket, quickly letting yourself into the building. You turned to take your things from the man, but he stopped you.

“I actually live here,” He stated as he stepped inside. He propped his umbrella by the door. “I don’t mind taking your things up to your place for you. I live on the third floor.”

You blinked, shocked. “Me, too. Wait— _You’re_ the guy moving across the hall from me?”

 _You’re_ the person who blasts music at odd hours of the night?”

You laughed nervously, “I wasn’t aware it was so loud.” You really didn’t. You had incredibly good hearing, and you didn’t have to turn your music up too much for it to be loud enough to drown out your thoughts while you were painting.

“It’s not, but I have good hearing.” The man replied with a small smirk. “I’m Steve, by the way.”

“(Y/N).” You nodded, heading for the stairs. Steve followed you, carrying everything easily as you had despite the fact that you knew it was pretty heavy by the way the clerk at the art store had eyed you skeptically when she asked if you could carry it all yourself. Of course, with the muscles Steve had…you doubted anything was heavy to him. “I’ll try to keep the music down, sorry. Um…so, where did you move from?” You asked conversationally as you both continued up the stairs.

“I grew up in Brooklyn,” He answered. “I just moved to a new building.”

“Oh,” You nodded. “I grew up in Jersey.”

Steve snorted, _“Jersey?_ I’m _so_ sorry.”

You smirked over your shoulder at him, “It wasn’t so bad, jeez. You sound like my dad. He _hated_ living in Jersey, but they had good schools in Montclair.”

“Sounds like your dad has good taste if he hates Jersey.” Steve chuckled as you both made it to the third floor. “Glad you came to your senses, though, and moved to Brooklyn.”

You laughed, “I moved here after…college.” You had almost let it slip you studied at the SHIELD academy, but managed to catch yourself in time. Thankfully, Steve didn’t seem to notice your slight hesitation.

Finally, you made it to your apartment. You unlocked the door, heading inside with Steve following. You led him to the spare room you had set up as an art studio. You turned to face him, noticing his eyes were wide with surprise. He sat down the bags and the canvases before he went over to a few paintings leaning against the walls. He picked one up, and you saw that it was one of your paintings of the New Mexican desert.

“Wow,” He murmured. “This is amazing. It reminds me of a J.M.W. Turner painting.”

You could feel your eyes lighting up when Steve mentioned your favorite painter.

“You know Turner?”

“I took a few art classes rowing up, we studied him.” Steve answered as he sat down the painting and looked at you. “He’s one of my favorites. Not the top, but he’s up there.”

“Alright,” You smirked, crossing your arms. “Who’s your favorite, then?”

“Poussin,” He answered. “ _Diane et Endymion_ is my favorite. What about you?”

“I’m a huge fan of Turner,” You replied, excited to speak to someone who loved art as much as you did. “My favorite is _Fishermen at Sea_. I love the darkness of it, the reflection of the moonlight casting light on the surroundings…” You trailed off, noticing Steve smiling at you. “Sorry, I get excited when people want to talk art. It’s kind of a rare thing.”

“No, it’s alright.” Steve chuckled. “It’s nice to talk about normal things with people.”

You grinned, “Yeah, it really is.”

“I should…get going,” Steve murmured. “It was nice meeting you, (Y/N).”

"Nice meeting you, too, Steve.” You replied as you led him back to the front door. “And I promise, I’ll try to keep the music down.”

Steve gave you a small smile, “It’s not a problem. I just have super good hearing. It’s your apartment, you should—“

“No, no,” You cut him off. “I should be more mindful of others. If you ever need anything, I’m across the hall.”

“I’ll remember that.” He nodded as he walked out the door. “See you around, I guess.”

“Yeah, see you.” You waved.

You noticed someone walking down the hall, and you recognized your father with Chinese takeout.

“Hey, dad,” You greeted.

Coulson froze, eyes rounding in pure shock as he looked at Steve. Your father looked absolutely in awe of your neighbor, and you wondered what the hell was going on.

“Dad?” You walked over to him, waving your hand in his face. He blinked rapidly, tearing his eyes away from Steve to look at you. “Whoa, you okay?”

“That’s _Captain America_.” Coulson hissed once Steve’s front door had shut. “Your neighbor is _Captain America,_ (Y/N)!”

“Wait, what?” You frowned in confusion. “Didn’t he die in 1944?”

“That’s why I was coming over!” Coulson said excitedly as the two of you went into your apartment. “We just found him in the ice, _alive!_ I didn’t realize they put him in the safehouse across the hall from you!”

“Safehouse?” You blinked. “Is that why no one ever lives there?” You took the takeout from Coulson, heading for the kitchen.

“How are you not freaking out about this?” Coulson hissed as he followed you.

“Because I’m not a big Captain America fanboy like you are?” You offered, smirking at your father. He rolled his eyes, and you laughed. “Dad, I’m sure he’s a regular guy…y’know, minus the super-soldier bit.” You faced your father, an amused smirk on your face. “Are you going to be hanging out around here more often now that you know my neighbor is Captain America?”

“I-“ Coulson scowled at you. “At least I can cook for you.” He smirked smugly as your eyes lit up. You couldn’t cook to save your life, and your father was offering free home cooked meals so long as you let him spy on your neighbor.

“Deal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man, I haven't updated in a while. Sorry! I've been looking for a new job, so things have been kind of hectic! 
> 
> \--
> 
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated!!


	4. Loki's Back

Your morning jogs were something you had started once you started attending the Academy. You enjoyed the quiet of your runs, hardly anyone was out so early in the morning in your neighborhood—which meant you were free to run at a not normal pace you very much preferred. Whenever you would miss one of your jogs, you felt like your legs were cramping up from not moving.

You exited your apartment, tucking your keys into the waistband pocket of your yoga pants that you usually ran in. Your phone was already in the pocket, since it went everywhere with you just in case SHIELD had a random assignment for you. Usually you just got texts from Natasha or Clint when they were bored.

As you headed for the stairs, you saw the bulky frame of Steve. He was dressed to work out as well, his shirt just a little too tight on him. You wondered if he had that problem with all the shirts he owned. Not that you minded…

“Hey, neighbor,” You greeted as you caught up to him.

“Oh, hey,” He replied, giving you a small smile. “Going out for a run?”

“Yeah, you up for a race?”

Steve chuckled, “No offense, but I don’t think you could keep up.”

“Give me some credit, Steve.” You smirked at the man. “Maybe you’ve met your match.”

He smirked back, “Alright, but don’t say I didn’t warn you, (Y/N).”

The two of you continued down the stairs, and you noticed how much bigger Steve was compared to you. He was like a marble statue come to life.

“So…” You looked up at Steve. “I’m assuming you heard my dad fawning over you due to your super-soldier hearing?”

A sad look appeared in Steve’s eyes, but he gave you a small smile. “I did. I’m guessing he works for SHIELD?”

“Well, we both do.” You replied.

Steve looked at you in shock, “Wait, what?”

“I’m a SHIELD agent,” You stated. “But don’t worry, I’m not watching you. I didn’t even know you were Captain America when I first met you. Hell, I didn’t even know the apartment across from mine was a SHIELD safehouse.”

“Oh,” Steve blinked.

The two of you stepped out of the building, and you did a few warm-up stretches. Steve copied you, then the two of you took off running down the sidewalk.

It was amazing to have someone who could keep up with you on a run when you were going at your top speed. Steve kept glancing over at you with wide eyes, and you realized that this was probably his first time to have someone keep up with him, too.

The jog was silent, the only noises were feet hitting the pavement and easy breathing. You checked your fitbit on your wrist, seeing that you and Steve had hit ten miles easily. By mile eleven, you were starting to sweat. By mile fifteen, the two of you were a little out of breath. The route you had run brought you right back to your apartment building.

“You’re good,” Steve stated, eyeing you skeptically. “Never had someone who could keep up with me.”

You shrugged, “Neither have I-“ You were stopped short as your phone rang. You pulled it out of your pocket, seeing _Agent Coulson_ flashing across the screen. Coulson was using his official SHIELD line, which meant it was going to be all business. “Carter,” You answered the phone, noticing how Steve’s eyes went a little wide. You suddenly realized how odd it must be for him to meet another Agent Carter.

 _"Are you secure_?”

“Yes, sir.”

“ _Loki’s here, and he’s got the Cube._ ”

Dread slammed into you like a freight train, and your grip on your phone tightened enough that you could hear the phone casing cracking. You took a steadying breath to calm yourself, feeling your heart stuttering in fear.

“Text me the coordinates, I’ll meet you there in thirty.” You stated, then hung up. You looked to Steve, seeing he was still staring at you with wide, blue eyes.

“Thanks for the run, Steve.” You gave him a small salute along with a tight smile that didn’t feel like it reached your eyes.

“Your last name is Carter?”

“I’m not related to the original Agent Carter.” You replied. “And I think I’d prefer if you called me (Y/N).”

“Oh…right.” Steve nodded. “Is everything alright? You looked kind of spooked?”

“It’s nothing,” You lied. “Thanks again for the run, I’ll see you around.”

You quickly made your way into the building. You didn’t have long to shower and change before meeting up with Coulson at SHIELD headquarters.

The entire time, your heart was racing in fear at the possible chance of meeting one of your biological parents.

* * *

You flipped switches on the control board of the quinjet. Flying was an easy thing for you, and you had taken to it quickly back at the Academy. You loved being able to fly through the air, which is why you offered to be the one to pick Steve up with Coulson in Brooklyn.

Coulson was practically bouncing in place as he waited for Steve to arrive. You couldn’t help but snicker at your father’s enthusiasm.

“What’s so funny?”

“You,” You answered, smirking over your shoulder at him. “Dad, you need to calm down or you’re going to combust.”

“You’re awful,” Coulson muttered. “Just the worst, (Y/N).”

You grinned at him. “And who’s fault is that?”

“I am not taking responsibility for what I _know_ to be Romanoff’s influence.” Coulson smirked at you. He then turned his attention to the ramp, and you glanced over to see Steve strolling into the jet. He inspected his surroundings, and you wondered what he thought of the futuristic jet he was now in.

“Hey, Steve.” You greeted, turning your pilot’s chair to face him. He seemed surprised to see you for a moment, then gave you a small smile and a wave.

“(Y/N),” He greeted. “And…Agent Coulson, right? You’re her father?”

“We’d prefer to keep that under wraps, if you don’t mind, Captain Rogers.” Coulson replied, sounding much more calm that you were assuming he was on the inside. He shook Steve’s hand, and you wondered how Coulson wasn’t vibrating out of his skin.

“Buckle up, boys.” You announced as you spun your chair back around. You hit the switch to close the ramp, then hit a few more switches. The jet rose into the air, and you set a course for the Helicarrier.

The ride was silent for a few minutes as Steve went over the files on the tablet in his hands.

“So, this Dr. Banner was trying to replicate the serum they used on me?” Steve asked after a moment.

“A lot of people were,” Coulson replied. “You were the world’s first superhero.”

“Banner thought that gamma radiation might be the secret to the serum.” You added.

“Didn’t really work out for him, did it?” Steve muttered, sounding almost bitter.

“Apparently not,” You replied.

“When Banner isn’t that…thing, the guy’s a Stephen Hawking.” There was a brief moment of awkward silence before Coulson explained who Steve Hawking was.

You were eagerly waiting for Coulson to make an idiot of himself in front of Steve. You wanted to get your phone out and record it, but you knew Coulson would have your phone hacked and the footage deleted.

“I gotta say,” Coulson stated after a moment. “It’s an honor to meet you, officially.”

You glanced back into the cabin of the jet, seeing that Coulson was looking at Steve with an awe-struck expression on his face. You turned back towards the expanse of the sky in front of you, eagerly waiting for Coulson to embarrass himself. You couldn’t help but smirk.

“I mean…I sort of met you already. I watched you while you were sleeping.”

“And there it is,” You snickered. You flinched as you felt Coulson swat the back of your head, which only made you more amused.

Coulson then began to try and fix his mistake, but it was too late, and he was making it worse.

“I mean…I was present while you were unconscious…from the-uh, the ice.”

You sensed movement, looking over your shoulder to see Steve was behind your seat, looking out the front window. Coulson was close, trying to look casual, but you could see he was internally scolding himself for being so creepy.

“I think he meant to say that it’s an honor to have you on-board, Steve.” You chuckled, looking up at Steve. You saw that he looked amused by Coulson’s fanboy issues.

“Well, I hope I’m the man for the job.” Steve replied.

“Oh, you are,” Coulson said eagerly. “Absolutely.” He looked down at his feet for a moment, then back up at Steve. “Um, we’ve made some modifications to the uniform. I had a little design input.” He added the past part with an air of pride.

“The uniform?” Steve frowned. “Aren’t the stars and stripes a little…old fashioned?”

“The world could use a little old fashioned,” You replied, giving Steve an encouraging smile before looking back out the window. Your headset buzzed, and a voice came over. You gave them the proper password, and they granted you access to board the helicarrier.

Once the jet landed, you turned the engine off and got out of your seat. You noticed Steve eyeing you suspiciously, his eyes lingering over your uniform.

“Problem, Captain?”

The tips of his ears turned a little red, “Uh, no. It’s just…odd to see you as a SHEILD agent, ma’am.”

You snorted, amused at his politeness. “Don’t call me ma’am. We’re basically the same age.”

“Right.” He cleared his throat, ducking his head slightly as he gestured to the open ramp of the jet. “Lead the way.”

You sauntered forward, Coulson next to you as Steve followed.

“You’re welcome for the save.” You whispered to Coulson.

“I’ll say it again, kid,” Coulson muttered. “You’re the worst.”

“She _is_ the worst.” Natasha agreed as she came over. 

You lightly punched Natasha in the arm with a laugh. She smirked at you, blue eyes twinkling with amusement.

“So, how was St. Petersburg?”

“The usual.” She shrugged. “Who’s your new friend?”

“Agent Romanoff, meet Captain Rogers.” Coulson introduced Steve. He sounded almost proud to be introducing his childhood hero, and you had to bite back a laugh. Coulson was making a fine fool of himself, and you were incredibly glad you had been there to witness it all.

“Ma’am.” Steve nodded.

Natasha and you exchanged an amused glance, then she looked at Coulson. “They need you on the Bridge, they’re starting the face trace.”

“See you there.” Coulson nodded, then left for the Bridge.

You, Steve, and Natasha walked away from the jet, seeing the airstrip was bustling with agents as they prepared for takeoff. You were eager to see Steve’s face when the helicarrier took off into the air. It was going to be priceless.

“Oh!” You grinned up at Steve. “Coulson is definitely going to ask you to sign his Captain America Trading Cards.”

“Trading Cards?” Steve smirked.

“They’re the original vintage set.” You explained, smirking back. “He’s super proud of them.”

Steve just shook his head, and you chuckled lightly at the way he looked slightly embarrassed. You wondered what it was like to be _that_ famous that you had trading cards with your face on them. It must have been incredibly weird.

You looked ahead, spotting a man whose picture was in the Avengers’ Initiative file. He looked incredibly nervous as he looked around at the people bustling about on the airstrip. You made your way over to him, offering your hand and introducing yourself.”

“(Y/N) Carter,” You smiled, and he carefully shook your hand as if he were afraid he’d break you.

“Bruce Banner,” He replied. His eyes rounded as Steve walked over and extended his hand. Bruce shook it. “Oh, yeah, hi. They told me you would be coming.”

“Word is you can find the cube.” Steve stated as he let go of Banner’s hand.

“Is that the…only word on me?” Bruce frowned as he glanced around nervously.

“Only word I care about.” Steve replied.

Bruce nodded, looking as if he hadn’t been expecting the answer Steve had given him. “This must be strange for you…all of this.” He gestured around the ship.

“Well,” Steve smirked. “This is actually kind of familiar.”

Natasha smiled secretively. “You might want to step inside in a minute. It’s gonna get a little hard to breathe.”

Steve frowned in confusion, and Banner’s nervousness got worse.

There was a grinding noise, and people began to move around faster as they prepared for takeoff. You watched as Steve and Bruce looked around curiously, trying to figure out what was happening around them.

“Is this a submarine?” Steve asked, sounding impressed.

“Really?” Bruce scoffed. “They want _me_ in a submerged, pressurized metal container?”

The helicarrier began to lift out of the water as you exchanged a knowing look with your best friend. The engines were whirring loudly, and the wind was picking up, causing your hair to whip around your face.

“Oh no,” Bruce muttered sarcastically. “This is _much_ worse.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for not updating sooner! I've been getting used to a new job! 
> 
> -
> 
> Comments and Kudos are always appreciated my dears!!


	5. Family Reunion

You walked onto the jet, your eyes lighting up in amusement as you saw Steve in his new uniform. It was a lot sleeker than his uniform from the old footage and photos—but definitely an improvement from his USO getup. His shield hung on his arm, and the cowl was hanging around his shoulders.

“Nice suit, Steve.” You smirked.

“It’s alright, I guess.” He shrugged, looking down at the star on his chest that seemed more like a target than you thought was safe. “Looks a lot different from my old uniform.” He sounded a little bitter about it, and you wondered how your father would react when he found out Captain America didn’t like the suit he designed.

“That it does,” You snorted as the hatch behind you closed. The engines whirred to life, and you settled into one of the seats. You weren’t too worried about strapping yourself in, Nat was a hell of a pilot.

“So…l—Um, read your file.” Steve sat next to you. His arm brushed against yours, and you noticed his uniform was made out of the same material as your own. You were just glad yours was a sleek black and not red-white-and-blue.

“Yeah?” You looked up at him, waiting for the onslaught of questions.

“Just makes sense now, why you could keep up with me.” He smirked.

You blinked, completely surprised. When people found out that you were classified as a super-soldier, there were always questions. At least Steve didn’t know about your true abilities. When Nat and Clint had found out about your other-worldly heritage, they had asked a million questions.

But not Steve.

Then you realized that he probably had the same onslaught of questions when people found out he was a super-soldier. It was hard to remember that Steve was a man out of time. That he had woken up in a completely different century where everyone he ever knew was dead or dying while he was still twenty-six and in the prime of his life. You couldn’t imagine what he must be going through, and your heart ached for him.

“Five minutes.” Natasha announced form the cockpit.

You got to your feet, checking that your weapons were in their proper places. A stiletto knife in each boot, a tactical knife strapped to your thigh, a gun on your hip, and you doubled checked the throwing knives on your belt.

Once you were satisfied with your weapons being secure, you went over to the ramp Steve had opened up in the jet. You saw that Nat had lowered the jet to give you both a safe distance to fall.

You jumped after Steve, landing in a roll and jumping to your feet easily. Steve was ahead of you, and you easily caught up to him.

Your heart thudded harshly in your ears as you spotted Loki in the middle of a kneeling crowd. There were more Loki’s surrounding the crowd as if he were herding them into one spot.

“Thought there was only one of him?” Steve frowned as he looked at the numerous Loki’s. A few of them seemed to be flickering as if they were holograms.

“I think those are just projected images,” You muttered as you glared at the center Loki. It was unsettling being so close to your birth mother, knowing that she had sent you to earth to die in a desert. “We need to get the civilians away from him before we can take him down. And he’s not going down without a fight.”

“I’ll face him head on, you come around from the side.” Steve ordered.

“Got it.” You nodded.

Steve took off running, and you were hot on his heels. You could feel the surge of adrenaline coursing through your veins as your body readied itself for a fight against an Asgardian. It had been a year since your run in with Thor, and you knew his brother wasn’t going to take it easy on you.

An elderly man was standing up and challenging Loki. You darted to the left while Steve blocked a blast from Loki’s scepter intended for the older man. Steve rose to his feet while you gauged the best spot to take Loki down from. The blast from Loki’s scepter ricocheted back when he attempted to hit Steve again—only to be hit by his own blast and knocked across the cobblestones.

“You know,” Steve scowled at Loki. “The last time I was in Germany and saw a man standing above everybody else…we ended up disagreeing.”

“Ah, the solider,” Loki sneered as he got to his feet. “The man out of time.”

“I’m not the one out of time.” Steve replied, eyes flickering to you for a brief second.

You shot forward, landing a harsh kick to Loki’s thigh that caused him to crumple slightly. You wrapped an arm around his throat, pulling tightly. He let out an amused laugh, but you could tell you were definitely cutting off his airway.

“ _Loki_ ,” Nat’s voice came over the PA system of the jet as it hovered over the square. The civilians were running for cover, and you were relieved to see them out of harm’s way. “ _Drop the weapon and stand down._ ”

“You cannot stop me.” Loki hissed, before wrenching his arm back and elbowing you in the ribs hard enough to knock the air from your lungs. You lost your grip on him, stumbling back as you tried to catch your breath. You heard a blast of energy, and you looked up to see the jet tilting to the side to avoid being hit.

“(Y/N)!” Steve barked, hurling his shield at Loki. It bounced off his chest, knocking the Asgardian back across the cobblestones past you. Steve rushed over to you, a worried look in his eyes.

“Just knocked the wind out of me.” You rasped as you straightened up. You grabbed a throwing knife in each hand, facing Loki. “Which was a big mistake, because now I’m pissed off.”

Loki opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off as _Shoot to Thrill_ was played over the PA system. You looked up, seeing a streak of light across the sky before Iron Man swooped out of the sky, kicking Loki in the chest and sending him flying back into the stairs.

Iron Man walked over to Loki, aiming numerous weapons from inside his suit at the Asgardian.

“Make a move, Reindeer Games.” Stark threatened.

Loki’s from began to glitter gold for a brief moment, his helmet disappearing. He held his hands up in surrender, and you were a little pissed the fight was over so quickly. You put your knives back on your belt before making your way over to Loki. You grabbed the handcuffs off of your belt, slapping them on Loki’s wrists.

He scowled up at you, “Is this any way to treat family?”

“You really want to have this discussion here?” You hissed, hauling him to his feet roughly. “Because I’ve got a few ideas on how family should be treated.”

 _“Ooh_ ,” Loki smirked darkly. “It would seem that you inherited my love of vengeance, Pet. That is wonderful to see-“ Loki grunted as your fist slammed into his gut. He let out a low laugh that only fueled your anger. You cocked your fist back to hit him again, but someone grabbed your elbow. You turned your head, seeing Steve gripping your elbow tightly.

“That’s enough,” He ordered. “We need to take him back to SHIELD.”

“You take him,” You muttered, shoving Loki towards Steve. “I don’t want to be near him.”

“That hurts, Pet.” Loki called out to you as you walked past him and toward the jet Natasha had landed in the empty square.

“Not your Pet.” You hissed over your shoulder before boarding the jet.

* * *

The ride back to SHIELD was quiet for all of forty-five seconds after the jet rose into the air. Of course, the person to break the silence was Tony Stark. You quickly realized why your father found the man so damn annoying.

“So, are we just going to ignore the fact that Rock of Ages here said he was _related_ to Xena, Warrior Princess?”

“Don’t worry about it.” You muttered, crossing your arms as you glared at Loki. “We’re not close. Besides, we should be focusing on why he gave up so easily.”

“She’s right,” Steve murmured. “I don’t remember it being that easy.”

“Still, you are pretty spry for an older fella.” Tony smirked at Steve. “What’s your secret? Calisthenics?”

Steve just glared at him.

Lighting crackled violently outside, and you could hear an ominous thunder rumbling in the distance. You looked out the front window of the jet, wondering where the thunderstorm had-

“Shit,” You muttered under your breath as realization hit you.

“What, afraid of a little lightning?” Steve asked. You scowled over your shoulder, but you saw that he was talking to Loki who had a worried look on his face.

“I’m not overly fond of what follows.” Loki muttered.

The storm seemed to intensify, and you stumbled as the jet rocked. You lost your footing, stumbling into Steve. He quickly steadied you with one hand while his other hand held the overhead bar.

“I’m guessing he isn’t going to be happy to see you?” You snapped at Loki as you glared at him.

“The feeling will be mutual.” He sneered.

“I’m sure he wasn’t happy to see you after he returned to Asgard after you sent the Destroyer!” You shouted.

Loki went to yell at you, only to be cut off by a loud banging overhead.

“What the hell is going on?” Steve demanded.

Tony grabbed his Iron Man helmet, slipping it on instead of waiting for an answer. Steve pulled on his cowl, grabbing his shield to prepare for the fight. Tony hit the button to open up the ramp, and you darted forward.

A very familiar man landed with a thud on the ramp. He was wearing his battle armor you had last seen him in, and his blond hair was much longer than it had been. Tony raised his hand, preparing to fire.

“No, don’t!” You shouted, but were completely ignored.

 Thor raised his hammer, smacking Tony in the chest and sending him flying back into you. You slammed into the ground, grunting as the weight of the Iron Man armor landed on top of you. You felt like you were being crushed, and you smacked at Tony’s armor until he moved.

“You okay, Princess?”

“M’fine,” You muttered as he helped you to your feet. “And don’t call me Princess.” You shoved past Tony, seeing Thor grab Loki by the throat.

“Thor!” You shouted over the wind.

“(Y/N)?” His head whipped to the side, his eyes rounding in surprise. A smile lit up his face. “It is so good to see you again!”

“Yeah, good to see you again, too, big guy.” You replied. “Mind putting Loki down?”

Thor shot Loki a glare, pushing him roughly back into his seat. You noticed the relieved look on Loki’s face, and you were considering just letting Thor fly Loki out of the jet so he could beat Loki. Those thoughts were quickly pushed to the side as you were swept up into a bear hug that knocked the air from your lungs. Thor sat you down, and you were relieved to breathe normally again.

“I apologize for not coming back sooner,” Thor clapped you on the shoulder. “But the Bifrost was destroyed in my attempt to save Asgard from the Frost Giants. How have you fared, my niece?”

“Whoa, wait a minute.” Tony held his hands up as the face plate of his mask slid open to reveal his stunned face. He looked at you, pointing at Thor. “ _This guy_ is your _uncle_?”

“It’s complicated,” You muttered as you hit the button to close the ramp. The wind whipping around the cabin stopped, and you brushed your now messy hair out of your face.

“How sweet, you’re ashamed of me.” Loki sneered, glaring at you.

“I will _stab you_.” You hissed, your hand going to the knife strapped to your thigh.

“I’m going to need more than just _it’s complicated_.” Steve gave you a stern look, and you crossed your arms like a petulant child. “You’re one of _them_?” Steve gestured to Loki and Thor.

You scowled back, hating the way he said _them_. You couldn’t help you were born in Asgard—that you were an Asgardian. You couldn’t help what you were, and it was annoying to have Steve and Tony looking at you like they were—As if they couldn’t trust you.

“All you need to know is that I have no ties to Loki, alright?” You growled. “I want to stop him as much as you all do.”

“You’re an alien,” Tony crossed his arms. “You don’t think we have a right to know since we’re all on the same side?”

“I recall that you were late to the party, Stark.” You snapped, getting in his face. You glared at him, your fists clenching at your sides. “Not sure if you even want to be here at all?”

Tony scoffed, “What? I like to make an entrance.”

"You’re nothing but a blowhard who makes _my job_ harder than it needs to be.” You growled. “Who do you think cleans up your messes after you pretend to be a hero?”

“(Y/N), I believe that is enough.” Thor stepped forward. His large hand rested on your shoulder, lightly tugging you back. You saw a low fire in Tony’s eyes, and you felt a surge of pride in yourself knowing that you had gotten under his skin.

“(Y/N),” Steve’s voice was gentle. You looked at him, seeing a gentleness in his eyes. “We just want to know all the facts.”

“I’m half-Asgardian,” You stated bitterly. “That’s all you need to know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, gosh! Guys, I'm so sorry for taking so long to update! Things have been kind of hectic lately! I started a new job, and it's been going pretty great! 
> 
> Oh...
> 
> AND I GOT ENGAGED. 
> 
> So yeah, been pretty busy lately! 
> 
> \--
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated!!


	6. Goodbyes

_“How desperate are you_?” Loki sneered over the video feed. You made your way over to Natasha, looking over her shoulder to see your biological mother in a large glass cage. _“You call on such lost creatures to defend you_.”

“ _How desperate am I_?” Fury scoffed. _“You threaten my world with war. You steal a force you can’t hope to control. You talk about peace, and you kill ‘cause it’s fun. You have made me_ very _desperate. You might not be glad that you did._ ”

“ _Oh_ ,” Loki purred. _“It_ burns _you to have come so close. To have the Tesseract, to have power—unlimited power. And for what?”_ Loki looked directly into the camera, grinning maliciously. You felt as if he were looking at _you,_ and it sent a shiver of fear down your spine. “ _A warm light for mankind to share_?” He looked away from the camera and back at Fury. _“And only to be reminded what real power is._ ”

Fury snorted and began walking away from the cage. _“Well, let met know if real power wants a magazine or something_.”

“ _What I want is to speak with my daughter_.” Loki hissed.

 _“That’s not going to happen_.” Furry snapped before the doors closed.

You felt as if everyone was looking at you. When you looked away from the screen, you saw that they were. You settled into the chair next to Natasha, folding your arms across your chest as you stared ahead and pretended to not feel their stares boring into you.

“He really grows on you, doesn’t he?” Bruce joked, trying to ease the tension in the room.

“Like a fungus.” You muttered.

“Loki’s gonna drag this out.” Steve stated, and you looked up to see he was looking at Thor now. “So, Thor, what’s his play?”

“He has an army,” Thor replied quietly, sounding as if he were blaming himself for what was happening. “They’re called the Chitauri. They’re not of Asgard, of or any known world. He means to lead them against your people. They will win him the Earth—and in return for what I suspect to be the Tesseract.”

“An army,” Steve repeated, looking incredibly _done_ with everything. “From outer space.”

“So, he’s building another portal?” Bruce took off his glasses as he spoke and cleaned them on his shirt. “That’s what he needs Erik Selvig for.”

“Selvig?” Thor frowned.

“We’ll get him back, Thor.” You stated gently, seeing the worry in Thor’s eyes.

“Loki has him under some kind of spell,” Natasha added, and you could see a glimmer of pain in her eyes. “Along with one of ours.” You reached out and squeezed Natasha’s shoulder, seeing that it was definitely getting to her that Clint was still under Loki’s control.

“I wanna know why Loki let us take him in.” Steve announced. “He’s not leading an army from here…??” He glanced at Bruce who shook his head.

“I don’t think we should be focusing on Loki, to be honest.” Bruce muttered. “That guy’s brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell crazy on him.”

You snorted in agreement.

“Have care how you speak,” Thor growled protectively. “Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard, and he is my brother.”

“He killed 80 people in two days.” Natasha growled.

Thor hesitated. “He’s adopted.”

“Another thing we have in common,” You muttered, crossing your arms again. “Isn’t that just fucking _great_.”

“Agent Carter, could I speak with you for a moment?” Coulson caught your attention. You hadn’t even noticed him coming into the room. You had been in a fould mood ever since you had first seen Loki in Germany, and it only seemed to get worse when people stared at you.

You got up from your chair, storming out of the room with Coulson on your heels. Once the two of you were a safe distance away from the doors of the bridge in the hallway, he let out a quiet sigh.

“You okay?”

“Not in the slightest.” You muttered. “Everyone knows that I’m Loki’s daughter, and they keep looking at me like I’m going to betray them all.”

“They’re just shocked, kid.” Coulson murmured, putting a hand on your shoulder. He squeezed gently, and you felt some of the tension leaving your body. At least your dad still trusted you. “They need time to adjust to it, alright? Try to keep your chin up.”

“Thanks,” You murmured, giving him a quick hug and a peck on the cheek.

* * *

Loki stiffened as the doors to the room closed behind you. Slowly, he turned to face you, a smug look on his face as he looked at you. He clasped his hands behind his back as he walked closer to you. He stopped by the glass wall separating the two of you, and you wished it were thicker.

“We both know that prison can’t hold you.” You stated, your hands fisting at your sides.

“Well, it would seem you inherited my intelligence as well, darling.” Loki mused. “I thought Fury would not let you come speak to me. It would seem he’s very overprotective of you.”

“A lot of people are,” You replied curtly. “Why are you still here, Loki?”

He chuckled darkly, “Because you’ve captured me, Pet. Isn’t that obvious? Perhaps you are not as smart as I thought?”

You scowled at him. The Asgardian was _infuriating_ and it took most of your willpower not to open the cage and wring his neck.

“I thought you Asgardians would be tougher.” You crossed your arms. You saw the tick of his eyebrow, showing you were starting to annoy him. A smug smirk lit up your face at the thought of getting under his skin.

“I am not even Asgardian,” Loki hissed, bracing his hands on the glass wall as he glared darkly at you.

Before you could ask what he meant, you saw he was starting to change. His pale skin was now turning blue, intricate lines etched onto the skin like scars. His toxic blue eyes were now completely red, and he bared his teeth at you.

“I am more like you than you think,” He snarled. “I, also, am a stolen relic from another world. I am of Jotunheim.” His appearance returned to normal, but he was still glaring at you with so much anger it made your heart stutter slightly in fear. “I was taken in by people who were _not_ my parents. It would also seem that neither of us are going to rule Asgard. However, I plan on taking over this planet and _you,_ my darling, will be my successor.”

You took a step back, stunned. “Why would you want me to be your successor when you didn’t even _want_ me in the first place?” You snapped at him.

“I never wanted to give you up!” Loki shouted, slamming a fist against the glass. Both of you froze as the cell he was in lurched as if it were about to drop. Once Loki realized it wouldn’t be dropping, he returned his attention to you. “The All-Father _took_ you from me and I watched as he sent you away! I could do nothing!”

“Why didn’t you come after me?” You whispered, tears forming in your eyes. “He sent me to a _desert_ to _die_.”

“He put a cloaking magic on you,” Loki growled. “I was not able to find you no matter how hard I tried.”

“You’re a liar.” You hissed. “A _monster_.”

He chuckled drily, “No darling. _You_ brought the monster.”

You froze, Loki’s plan clicking into place in your mind. You put a shaking hand to your ear, activating your com.

“Loki plans to unleash the Hulk, sir.” You murmured, hearing how shaky your voice had become.

 _“Good work, agent,_ ” Fury replied. _“Get out of there_.”

You turned to leave, and Loki called out to you.

“You _will_ join me, Pet.” He snarled. “You will rule this world.”

You stepped out of the room, the doors sliding shut behind you. You braced your back against the doors, a small sob tearing through you as you slid to the floor. You buried your face in your hands, another sob hitting you.

“Shit,” You heard Nat’s voice, then felt her pulling you into a hug. “Hey, c’mon, (Y/N). Don’t let that bastard get to you.”

You sobbed into her shoulder as she held you, and you felt like you were breaking into pieces. She silently held you, letting you cry out your frustrations.

You didn’t know how to feel. Loki had wanted to keep you, and it was the All-father who had sent you away because you were half-human. That meant Loki still wanted you, and part of you was relieved by that. It meant your real mother had actually wanted you—Yet, if you had stayed with him, you would have more than likely ended up just like Loki. Twisted and bent on revenge, and you felt sick at your stomach at the thought.

“Oh, sweetheart.”

You looked up, seeing Coulson rushing forward. Nat let go of you, and you rushed towards your father, letting him pull you into a tight hug. Another sob was wrenched form you as you clung to him, hearing him assure you that you were going to be fine, that Loki wasn’t worth your tears.

Coulson had been the _best_ father to you. Hell, he was still the best father a person could ask for. You were so close to him, and you couldn’t imagine being raised by anyone else. You were incredibly lucky to have been adopted by such an amazing person, and that made you cling tighter to him.

“I’m sorry,” Coulson murmured into your hair. “I’m sorry you have to go through this.”

“Not your fault,” You mumbled as you looked up at him. He offered you a handkerchief and you dabbed at your eyes before wiping the tears off your cheeks. “I just want to stop him before he hurts anyone else.”

Coulson gave you a worried look, “You sure you’re okay?”

“No,” You admitted. “But I’ll feel a hell of a lot better when he’s not on the planet anymore.”

* * *

You needed a change of scenery. The Bridge was met with looks of concern from Coulson and Fury, and you weren’t eager to deal with that after such a raw moment. So, you decided the one place no one would give you a pitying look was in the lab with Tony and Bruce.

As you walked in, you saw that Tony was the only one in the lab at the moment.

“Well, well, well,” Tony smirked at you. “You wander in here by accident? Thought you gun-toting types avoided the science-y parts of this place?”

“Anyone ever tell you how annoying you are?” You scowled at him.

“Every day of my life,” He replied. “Now, what brings you to our neck of the woods, Princess?”

“Don’t call me that,” You muttered, leaning against the sleek metal counter.

“Someone’s touchy,” Tony continued to smirk. “I see the family reunion didn’t go too well-“

You stalked over to him, staring him down with a look you had perfected over the years working at SHIELD. Tony didn’t bow down, opting to stand his ground.

“What is your _problem_ with me?” You demanded.

“My problem is that you’re one of _them_.” Tony growled. “Not to mention you have a guaranteed throne if this all goes south, Princess-“

You swung, your fist connecting with his jaw. You didn’t put all your power behind it, but you put enough power in it to make him stumble back. You lowered your fist, continuing to glare at him. Tony put a hand to his jaw, eyes wide as he looked at you.

“I’m assuming that’s your way?” He muttered, opening and closing his jaw for a moment before continuing. “Wherever you’re from—Asgard? Violence is just how you guys settle things?”

“I wouldn’t know.” You shrugged. “I wasn’t raised there.”

Tony frowned, “What?”

“They sent me here to die,” You replied calmly. You were surprised at how calm you sounded when you were so unbelievably angry. “SHIELD found me, I was adopted and raised on this planet. And from what I can see, violence is how we handle things on Earth.” You felt your lip twitching into a malicious smirk. “But you know that, don’t you? You made _billions_ on weapons—thousands upon thousands of lives taken by Stark weapons.”

You watched as a low fire began to simmer in Tony’s eyes. He set his jaw, and you were pleased to see a bruise starting to form under his skin.

“I’m not that person anymore.”

“Uh…”

You both turned, seeing Bruce had made his way back to the lab. He looked at you and Tony, obviously sensing the tension in the room.

“I can come back?”

“Don’t’ bother, I was just leaving.” You muttered, heading for the door.

Coulson was right. Tony Stark was an asshole.

You couldn’t believe the nerve of that man. Accusing you of wanting to help Loki succeed. You wanted no part of Loki’s plan, and wanted to stop them as much as the others did. Not to mention the fact that you wanted one of your closest friends back.

A broken lock on a door caught your attention, and you came to a halt. You silently pulled your gun off of your hip, then made your way into the storage room. You quietly made your way through the storage room, following the sound of crates being broken into.

You turned a corner, aiming your gun at the man.

“Steve?” You frowned, lowering your gun. He startled, turning to face you. “What are you doing?” You asked as you holstered your weapon.

“Getting answers,” He stated.

“Answers?”

“C’mon, (Y/N), you can’t tell me that something doesn’t feel off about all of this.” He made his way over to a larger crate. “Something in my gut is telling me there’s more to this than we’ve been told.”

“Maybe you’re just paranoid, Steve.” You joked.

 He froze as the lid to the crate hit the back wall. You walked forward, looking over his shoulder at the contents of the crate. You felt your blood run cold, recognizing the style of weapon and the very familiar mask sitting inside.

Not to mention the symbol stamped onto the gun.

“Oh, shit.” You breathed. You had only seen these guns in old war footage from the documentaries your father was always watching. Now you were seeing one in real life that was just sitting in the storage room of the agency you had dedicated most of your life to.

“Stark was right,” Steve muttered, sounding incredibly angry as he picked up the gun. He then began to make his way out of the storage room, you following behind him. “They want to make weapons.”

“HYDRA weapons at that.” You muttered.

“Did you know about this?” Steve demanded as he came to a halt outside of the room.

You scoffed, “Why would I know something about this?” His accusatory tone was only pissing you off, and you wondered if he didn’t trust you because of your true parentage. “Why would I stand by and let SHIELD make _HYDRA_ weapons?”

“You tell me,” Steve growled, leaning down to get in your face. You held your ground. You had faced scarier men than Steve Rogers, and you weren’t afraid to kick Captain America’s star-spangled ass even further into the future. “You’ve been working at SHIELD for a long time.”

“Don’t _accuse_ me of something like this, Rogers.” You hissed. “I don’t like this anymore than you do. I’ve heard of the kind of destruction those weapons caused, and I don’t want _any_ part of it. Understood?”

Steve straightened up, giving you a small nod. “Good. Glad there’s someone on this team I can trust.”

You stopped, “You trust me?”

“You’ve made it clear I can trust you.” Steve nodded, then headed for the lab.

You blinked, still a little in shock. You hadn’t been expecting that answer, and now that you had it…well, you couldn’t help but feel a little better about your situation.

* * *

"What’s Phase Two?” Tony demanded as Steve walked into the room with you behind him. Steve dropped the gun noisily on the counter, getting everyone’s attention.

“Phase Two is that SHIELD uses the cube to make weapons.” He glanced at Tony. “Sorry, the computer was moving a little slow for me.”

“We gathered everything related to the Tesseract.” Fury defended. “This does not mean we’re making-“

"I’m sorry, Nick,” Tony spoke loudly over the director. “What were you lying?” He turned the screen to show schematics for a weapon powered by the Tesseract. You felt your eyes widen, going over to the screen to get a better view of it.

Even in your surprised state, you could see that Tony was giving you an odd look. It wasn’t one of fear—which you had been expecting since you socked him in the jaw. This look was…well, _odd_. He was looking at you as if he were trying to understand you.

“I was wrong, director.” Steve growled. You turned, seeing anger written all over Steve’s face. Nat and Thor made their way into the lab. “The world hasn’t changed one bit.”

“Did _you_ know about this?” Bruce asked Nat in an accusatory tone.

“You want to think about removing yourself from this situation?” She retorted.

Bruce chuckled dryly. “I was in Calcutta, I was pretty well removed.”

“Loki is manipulating you-“

“And what are you doing exactly?” Bruce scoffed, cutting Natasha off.

“You didn’t come here because I bat my eyelashes at you.” Nat growled.

“Listen,” Bruce muttered. “I’m not leaving because you suddenly get a bit twitchy.” He turned the screen, pointing at it with the pen in his hand. “I want to know why SHIELD is using the Tesseract to build weapons of mass destruction.”

“Because of those two.” Fury pointed at you, then Thor. Your eyes widened in shock, looking to see Thor was just as confused as you. You felt betrayed by the man you had called your uncle as you looked at Fury. He was building weapons because of _you_. “Years ago, a baby was sent to this planet showing us that we are not alone in the universe. _Last year_ , Earth had a visitor from another planet who had a grudge match that leveled a small town. We learned that, not only are we alone, but we are hopelessly— _hilariously_ —outgunned.”

“My people want nothing but peace with your planet.” Thor defended, looking almost as upset as you felt.

“I’ve never given you a reason to doubt that I’m on your side.” You added, feeling tears of betrayal pricking the backs of your eyes.

“But you’re not the only people out there, are you?” Fury snapped.

You could feel the mood of the lab shifting dangerously towards hostile. You glanced nervously at Bruce, then turned your attention back to Fury.

“And you’re not the only threat.” He continued. “The world’s filling up with people who can’t be matched. They can’t be touched.” Fury glanced around at everyone in the room, and you realized he was also including others with abilities and suits of armor as dangers, too.

“Your work with the Tesseract is what drew Loki to it.” Thor growled, getting closer to Fury. “And his allies! It is a signal to all the realms that Earth is ready for a higher form of war.”

“Higher form?” Steve scoffed.

“ _You_ forced our hand,” Fury snarled at Thor. “We had to do something-“

“A nuclear deterrent.” Tony rolled his eyes. “Because _that_ always calms everyone down.”

You snorted, “And how the hell did you make your fortune, Stark?”

“I shut that part of my company down-“

 “I’m sure if he still made weapons, Stark would be neck deep-“

“Wait—wait, hold on!" Tony cut Steve off. “How is this now about me?”

“I’m sorry, isn’t it always?” Steve sneered.

“I thought humans were more evolved than this.” Thor muttered.

“They’re not.” You replied, annoyed.

“What happened to you being on our side?” Tony snapped at you.

“You don’t seem to trust me anyway!” You shouted, throwing your hands in the air. “I’m just some weird alien you can’t trust because of who my mother is!”

“We’re more worried about your father,” Steve growled.

"Loki isn’t-“

“You speak of control, yet you cause chaos!” Thor shouted at Fury, and the room went silent at his thundering voice.

“That’s his MO, isn’t it?” Bruce snorted incredulously. “I mean, what are we, a team? No, no-no, we’re a chemical mixture that _makes_ chaos. We’re-We’re a time bomb.”

“You need to step away.” Fury told Bruce calmly, yet firmly.

“Why shouldn’t the guy let off a little steam?” Tony quipped, clapping a hand on Steve’s shoulder.

“You know damn well why!” Steve shouted, smacking Tony’s hand away from him. “Back off!”

“Oh, I’m starting to want you to make me.” Tony growled, his voice going cold.

Steve scoffed as he began walking around Tony. “Big man in a suit of armor, take that off and what are you?”

“Genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist.” Tony quipped.

“I know guys with none of that worth ten of you-“

“Knock it off,” You snapped, getting between the two men, putting a hand on each of their chests to keep them from getting any closer. “You two can have your pissing match later.”

They ignored you, continuing to glare at each other.

“I’ve seen the footage,” Steve spat, pushing against your hand to get in Tony’s face. “The only thing you fight for is yourself. You’re not interested in making the sacrifice play. To lay done on a wire and let the other guy crawl over you-“

“I think I’d just cut the wire.” Tony snapped.

“Always a way out.” Steve sneered. “You know, you may not be a threat, but you better stop pretending to be a hero.”

“Stop!” You hissed, shoving Steve back. “That’s _enough_.”

“A hero?” Tony scoffed. “Like you? You’re a laboratory experiment, Rogers. Everything special about you came out of a bottle.”

“Why don’t you put on the suit, we can go a couple of rounds-“

“I said stop!” You shouted, surprising both of the men.

“I don’t need you to fight my battles,” Tony hissed at you.

“You think you can go against a guy with super strength without that suit of yours?” You growled at him. “You’re as good as dead without it.”

“Stop pretending like you care about us,” Tony snarled. “You’re probably just waiting for the chance to break Loki out of his prison so you can help him unleash that army.”

“Do you _seriously_ want me to punch you again?” You hissed. “Why the fuck would I want to help the person who _abandoned_ me on a different planet?”

“Because you’ve got a guaranteed throne if he wins!” Tony hissed.

Thor chuckled, amused at the fighting around him. It only made you angrier. “You people are so petty! And tiny!”

You were about to start yelling at Thor, when Bruce’s voice caught your attention. His voice was full of anger, and you were immediately on high alert.

“Where?” He scoffed. “You rented my room.”

Fury tried to defend himself. “The cell was just in case-“

“Just in case you wanted to kill me.” Bruce spat. “But you can’t! I know, I’ve tried!”

The room went dead silent at Bruce’s confession. Everyone was watching him in various stages of shock.

You felt your heart ache for him. You had never been close to anyone who had committed suicide, and you were incredibly grateful for that. Hearing someone openly admit to attempting to kill themselves was causing your heart to break for him.

“I got low,” Bruce continued. “I didn’t see an end…so I put a bullet in my mouth and the Other Guy spit it out. So—I moved on. I focused on helping other people. It was good-“ He grabbed the staff, lifting it off its pedestal. Your hand went to the gun on your hip, your heart hammering as you watched Bruce continue. “’Till _you_ brought me back into this freak show.” He glared at Natasha, and you felt a surge of protectiveness in you for your best friend. “You put everyone here at risk. You want to know my secret, Agent Romanoff? You want to know how I stay calm?”

“Bruce,” You voice was oddly calm despite the fear slamming into your ribs. “Put down the scepter, please.”

Bruce hesitated, looking down at the scepter in his hands as if he had no idea how it had gotten there. One of the computers began to chirp, cutting through the tension in the room.

Bruce sat the scepter down on the counter, heading for the chirping computer. “Sorry, kids, you don’t get to see my party trick after all.”

“You’ve located the Tesseract?” Thor asked, walking over to join Bruce at the computer with Natasha behind him.

“I can get it faster.” Tony announced, heading for the door.

“You’re not going alone!” Steve growled, grabbing the sleeve of Tony’s shirt.

Tony smacked Steve’s hand away. “You gonna stop me?” He taunted.

“Put on the suit, let’s find out.” Steve growled. They were now in each other’s faces, and you let out a frustrated groan as you shoved your way between them.

“Stop being dicks.” You growled, shoving them away from each other.

“I’m not afraid to hit an old man.” Tony glared at Steve.

“Put on the suit!” Steve demanded.

“He’s not putting on the damn suit!” You shouted, tired of the macho-alpha-male bullshit you were dealing with. “You’re both being idiots and need to stop right now!”

“Oh, my God.” Bruce muttered, capturing everyone’s attention.

An explosion rocked the lab. You were blasted forward, smacking into the wall before you fell on top of Steve. Your ears were ringing, and you swallowed back panic. In the six years you had worked at SHIELD, you had never been this close to an explosion, and you were rocked to your very core.

Steve tapped your cheek, and you opened your eyes to see your face was incredibly close to his. In any other situation, you would have been embarrassed. However, now, you were too preoccupied by the fact that everything was turning into a warzone around you.

You quickly got off of Steve, offering your hand to him and pulling him to his feet.

You turned to Tony, “Put on the suit.” You went over to the hole in the floor, your heart dropping in fear as you saw Natasha with her leg pinned under a large pole.

“(Y/N), what are you doing?” Steve grabbed your arm before you could jump.

“I have to help her.” You replied. “You go help Stark.”

Steve hesitated, then nodded. “Be careful.”

You jumped into the hole, landing lightly next to Natasha. She looked up at you, a faint panic in her eyes. You turned, seeing Bruce struggling to keep control of his other side. You cursed under your breath, quickly lifting the pole off of her legs, then helping her to her feet.

There was an ungodly roar, and you decided it would just be faster to carry your best friend. You pulled Natasha onto your back and took off running as fast as you could through the intricate pipework of the helicarrier.

“Left!” Natasha barked, clinging tightly to you.

You followed her directions, ducking and weaving to avoid getting hit by poles or wires. You felt your heart thundering in your ears as you ran. You could hear the Hulk roaring as it ran after you. The pipes and wiring were being torn to shreds as the Hulk barrled after you.

" _Barton is on level three._ ” Hill barked over the coms.

“Get me up there, I’ll handle Barton.” Natasha ordered.

 “Got it,” You nodded, taking a running leap. You grabbed onto a pipe and pulled yourself and Natasha up onto a catwalk. Natasha climbed off your back, and the Hulk barrled under the catwalk.

 _“Carter, get to Loki!_ ” Fury shouted over the coms.

“Agent Carter responding.” You replied, then turned to Natasha. “You got this?”

“Yeah, be careful.” She replied, giving you a small nod before you raced off to the detention wing.

You fought Loki’s men as you charged through the helicarrier. You took them out quickly, avoiding getting any severe wounds. The punch to your jaw someone landed stung, but that seemed to be the worst of it.

You grabbed a knife off your thigh as you got to the detention wing, taking a steadying breath before you hit the button to open the doors.

The sight you were met with caused a scream to be torn from your throat.

Loki’s scepter was in Coulson’s chest, and you felt as if your own heart was the one being stabbed. Loki removed the scepter, and Coulson slumped against the wall, a large gun resting in his lap.

"What kind of father is he to not be able to protect you?” Loki sneered. He stepped over Coulson’s legs as if he were just a piece of trash. “He didn’t put up much of a fight, I’m afraid.”

“You sick son of a bitch,” You hissed, feeling tears streaming down your cheeks. “I’m going to kill you.”

“(Y/N), put the knife down.” Loki sounded annoyed you would stand up to him. “There is no need to fight _me_ , P-“

“Call me ‘Pet,’ I dare you.” You snarled, stepping towards him. You saw a flicker of movement, seeing that Coulson was using his remaining strength to move the gun. He gave you a small nod, and you turned your attention to Loki. “Get the fuck off my planet.”

You ducked and rolled as a ball of fire erupted from the gun in Coulson’s lap. Loki flew out of the room, slamming through a hole in the wall left behind from the explosion. You dropped your knives and rushed to Coulson. You kneeled next to him, applying pressure to the gaping wound in his chest.

“I’m so sorry,” You sobbed, meeting his gaze. He looked so weak, and it broke your heart even more to see him like this. Blood was trailing out of the corner of his mouth. You had never seen your father look so beaten up in your entire life, and it was killing you to see him like this. “Dad, I’m so sorry.”

“Not your fault,” He rasped. His shaky hand reached up, cupping your jaw weakly. You could feel warm blood on your skin where he touched you. “Just promise me you’ll get that bastard.”

“I will, dad, I will.” You vowed, more tears streaming down your cheeks. “Just, you have to stay awake, please?”

"Don’t know if I can, sweetheart.” He replied weakly. You leaned forward, pressing a kiss to his head. “I love you, (Y/N).”

“I love-“ You froze after you pulled back. His hand fell from your face, and his entire body went slack. You could _see_ the light leaving his eyes, and your heart felt as if it were being carved out of your body. Your lungs felt like they were shutting down, and you couldn’t get in a good breath of air as you began to hyperventilate.

You sobbed violently, burying your face in Coulson’s bloody chest as you did.

You didn’t know how long you sat like that—sobbing into your dead father’s chest. The next thing you knew, someone was pulling you away.

“No!” You grasped for Coulson, but a pair of medics were already taking him away from you. The sight of the black bag caused your heart to lurch. “No! No, _no!_ ” You looked up at the person who had pulled you to your feet, seeing that it was Fury. You didn’t care how weak you looked at the moment. All that mattered was that the _only family_ you had ever known was now dead. You were alone, and you were utterly terrified. “Uncle Nick, _please_ —please, we have to do something!”

“(Y/N),” Fury’s voice was gentle, something you hadn’t heard since you were a kid. “It’s too late. He’s gone.”

 _“No!”_ You screamed, your knees giving out. Fury barely managed to catch you, lowering you to the ground as you sobbed recklessly. You clutched onto Fury’s jacket, sobbing into his chest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh, so sorry about keeping y'all waiting! 
> 
> Wedding planning is a lot more stressful than I was anticipating!


	7. The Aftermath

    It was unsettling. 

 

    Steve had been to memorial services before. He had lost friends in battle, had seen the faces of women recently widowed, mothers lose sons, seen children loose fathers. It was always heart breaking to see so much pain in people's eyes, had even seen the pain in his own eyes. 

    But he had only seen you as a strong person. He had seen you fight with ease and finesse, and he was amazed at how strong you were. You kept up with him on runs, talked art with him, always smiling. 

 

    The memorial service for Agent Coulson was the most broken he had ever seen you. 

 

    You barely acknowledged people talking to you, eyes slightly glassy and staring off into the distance. The look soldiers got, the thousand-yard-stare. He understood it, he experienced it often enough. But seeing it on you was breaking his heart. 

 

     He watched as you shook hands, gave small nods, thanking people for coming all the while standing by yourself. 

 

    The hardest thing to watch was your eulogy for the man who had raised you. 

 

    You barely got through the words, and by the end you were openly sobbing at the podium. Natasha and Clint were at your side in seconds, Fury and another agent-- a woman he only knew by name, Melinda May-- were the next to go to you. You sobbed into Clint's chest, Natasha stroking your hair and murmuring something to you that you nodded to. 

 

    Now Steve was walking up the stairs two weeks later to your apartment. He hadn't really spoken to you since the memorial service. He was getting worried. Usually he would see you in the mornings during runs, but there hadn't been any sign of you since the battle. 

 

    Like now, he could hear you moving around inside your apartment. The smell of fresh paint floated to him, giving him the urge to paint. He knocked, listening as you turned down unfamiliar music then made your way to the door. 

 

    The door opened to reveal you. Paint was splattered across your dark sweats and tight tank-top, even your cardigan had a few splashes of paint as it hung off of your shoulders. He could see a few splashes of blue in your hair, green on your cheek, purple on your hands. 

 

    "Steve?"

 

    He held up a container with two chocolate cupcakes. "Thought you could use these." He rubbed the back of his neck as he gave you a lopsided shrug. He wondered how it looked for him to just randomly show up at your apartment. Of course, he couldn't use the excuse that he lived across from you anymore since he was currently moving to DC.

 

    A ghost of a smile flitted across your face as you pushed a few wisps of hair out of your face. You opened the door wider, letting him inside. You shut the door, then went over to a record player in the corner and turned off the music. Steve was a little surprised by the record player, he didn't think people used them anymore. 

 

    Your apartment was very...well, you. Big windows letting in natural light, the entire place was clean despite you being in mourning for the past few weeks. A large television sat on a wall, plush furniture circled around it. A shelf held an arry of vinyl records next to your record player. 

 

    "sorry, I'm such a mess," You murmured, scowling at your reflection in a mirror by the front door. You rubbed your sleeve across the slash of green on your cheek. "I paint when I can't sleep or if I'm upset... So I've been painting a lot, lately." 

 

    "I could smell the paint from the hall." Steve chuckled.

 

    "You're like a bloodhound, Steve." You smirked at him as you took one of the cupcakes out of the container and bit into it. "These are pretty good." 

    Steve took the other one, taking a bite. "They are pretty good. I have good taste."

 

    "In food, at least." You snorted in amusement as you walked down the hall. Steve followed wondering where you were going. He also noticed your hips swaying ever so slightly as you walked, and he felt a blush rising to his cheeks.

 

    "Thanks for these, by the way." You stayed as you led him into your art studio. "I'm guessing Fury sent you to get me to rejoin SHIELD?" 

 

    "You quit?" Steve frowned, not having heard the news. His eyes trailed over the paintings, and he was once again floored by your artistic talents. The art displayed seemed much better than the art he had seen when he had first met you. The paintings were gorgeously done, with vibrant colors and so beautifully painted they seemed almost like photographs. 

 

    He watched as you went over to a painting on an easel. It was the New York City skyline, half-finished. 

 

    "So, you're not here to get me to rejoin SHIELD?" 

 

    "I didn't know you had quit," Steve replied. "To be honest, I was kind of hoping we would get sent on missions together." He noticed a faint blush on your cheeks at what he had said. "I mean...we work well together."   

 

"Oh...yeah, I guess we do." You crossed your arms, looking as if you were trying to hold yourself together. "It's just...hard to go back to SHIELD knowing that...that my dad won't be there."

 

    Steve could feel his heart aching for you. He had lost a lot of people, family and friends, and to see someone going through the same pain was heart breaking. 

 

    "I have a warehouse." He stated, an idea forming in his mind. 

 

    "Um...congrats?" 

 

    "No-" He sighed, letting out a small chuckle. "I have a warehouse where I've stored my stuff Tony gave to me. Apparently, Howard collected all of my belongings, and Tony gave them back to me. Anyway, there's--It's just easier if I show you." 

 

    "I have paint in my hair," You replied. "And I'm wearing sweats."

 

    "You look fine," He assured you. "It's just a few blocks away, and I think you'll like the warehouse." 

    You sighed, "Fine." 

 

    --

    

    You had been expecting a storage building. What you were met with as Steve parked his motorcycle was a decently sized warehouse.You climbed off of the bike, missing the warmth of Steve as you let him go. The guy was like a glorified furnace--it was nice. 

 

    "C'mon," Steve gestured for you to follow. 

 

    Inside the warehouse were numerous boxes, most of them still taped up as if Steve hadn't yet brought himself to look inside them. He continued past the boxes, heading fora large wall in the back. 

 

    The entire wall was covered in splashes of paint in every color. It was as if Steve had just thrown cans of paint at the wall in an attempt to cover the stark white that was shining through the colors. You look around, seeing a few cans of paint were still full.

 

    "Looks like a Jackson Pollock inspired piece." You joked. Steve gave you a confused look, and you realized he had no idea who you were talking about. "He'ls an abstract expressionist." You explained. 

 

    "Oh... I never really liked abstract art." Steve admitted. 

 

    "Me either," You smirked. "Just looks like...well, this--" You gestured at the wall in front of you. "Now, why exactly did you bring me here?"

 

    Steve splashed his hands in the blue paint, then turned to the wall and slung blue across the paint already decorating the wall. 

 

    "It's a good way to get your emotions out." He explained. 

 

    "Oh." You blinked, realizing why he had brought you here. 

 

    Steve Rogers-- _Captain America--_  was worried about you. It was a little heartwarming to know one of your teammates cared so deeply about you that he would show you his preferred method of letting off steam. 

 

        You shrugged off your cardigan, letting in drop to the tarp on the floor. You dipped your hands in the red paint at your feet, then slung it across the wall. You couldn't help but smile, knowing that you were creating such a big mess and it didn't matter. 

 

    You continued slinging red paint onto the wall, and Steve joined you with blue. The only sounds in the room was paint sloshing and hitting the wall.

 

    However, despite the fun you were having slinging paint...your mind began to wander.

 

    You could still remember it all so clearly. Fury barking at you to keep Loki on the helicarrier, running to the room he was held in only to find Loki plunging a scepter into Coulson's chest. You could see the blood blossoming across Coulson's shirt, the blood dripping out the corner of his mouth, his last words-

 

    _I love you, (Y/N)._

 

The sob that tore through you was unexpected. You took a shaky step back, your vision blurring with tears.Your chest felt too tight, likeyou wre being squeezed in a vice like grip that prevented you from breathing. 

 

    (Y/N)?" Steve's voice was quiet, but full of worry. 

 

    "How...how do you do this?" You whispered, feeling the tears splashing onto your cheeks. "How do you just...go on with you life like this, Steve?" 

 

    Steve was quiet for a moment, and you wondered if you had taken it too far. Steve had lost so much more than you hoped you would ever lose. The way he seemed to be staring off into the distance, as if he were reliving bad memories-- you couldn't help but feel like a total asshole for asking him such a thing.

 

    "I'm still trying to figure it out." He finally answered, meeting your gaze. His sky-blue eyes were full of a sadness you had becoming very familiar with in the past two weeks. 

 

    "I'm sorry," You murmured, swallowing nervously. "I-I shouldn't have asked you that. God, I can't imagine what you're going through right now. I mean, you're in a different _century_ , and you barely had time to adjust before you were swept into--" 

 

    You were cut off as Steve grabbed your face in his paint covered hands, pulling you into a kiss. You were definitely surprised, your whole body going stiff for a second before you melted into the kiss. You grabbed the front of his shirt, not caring that red paint was now covering Steve's t-shirt. You pulled him closer, and he must have been surprised by your strength since he stumbled into you. Thankfully, he managed to save you both from falling by slamming you against the wall, one hand reaching out to steady himself so he wouldn't crush you. 

 

    His other hand was still cupping your face, but as the kiss deepened his hand moved to rest on your waist.

 

    Steve was warm, his body pressed up against yours. When you came up for air, he left a trail of kisses down your jaw, down to your neck. You hiked a leg up on his hip, then his hands grabbed your thighs and pulled you up so you could lock your ankles behind his waist, your back pressed against the wall.

 

    You knew this was a bad idea. The two of you were obviously hurting, dealing with your own losses. Two people in pain usually meant bad decisions were about to follow. 

 

    "Steve--" You gasped as he nipped at a sensitive spot on your neck. You put a hand on his chest, pushing him back. He pulled back, eyes meeting yours. The both of you were breathless, and now that the kissing had stopped, you could see that Steve was realizing what a mistake this was going to be. 

 

    "I'm so sorry." He sat you down, a blush creeping up his neck. "I-I shouldn't--"

 

    "No, it's fine." You swallowed nervously as your adjusted your shirt that had ridden up. You could feel blue paint on your skin, causing your shirt to stick to you. "I should...I should go."

 

    "I could give you a ride home?" Steve offered. 

 

    "I could use a walk," You admitted. "And thanks for letting me..." You gestured at the wall behind you. You blushed brightly at the imprint of your back against the wall, Steve's hand-print just a little higher up. 

 

    You can come here whenever you want to... to paint, if you want." Steve avoided your gaze, looking down at his feet.

 

    "I'll remember that, thanks." You gave him a small smile when he finally met your gaze. "As for working together again...I'll think about coming back to SHIELD." 

 

    "Right," He nodded. "Um...see you around, (Y/N)." 

 

    You quickly made your way out of the warehouse and headed for your apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy smokes, I haven't updated in a while! Sorry for leaving y'all hanging for so long! I started a new job, and add planning a wedding on top of all that is just so much time taken away from the things I like to do!
> 
> Here's a little bit of action between Reader and Steve, finally! I'll do my best to update more often, guys! Thanks for sticking around! You are all AMAZING!


	8. Assassins make good friends.

The painting in front of you was half-finished. For some reason, you couldn't get the colors to blend the way you wanted, and you were getting more frustrated the longer you looked at it. You sighed, pushing your hair back from you face as you left the small art studio you had set up in your Brooklyn apartment.

 

As you walked into your kitchen, you stopped in the doorway to find your two friends had made their selves at home. Clint was drinking coffee straight out of the pot, and Natasha was digging through the fridge.

 

"You need to go grocery shopping." She announced as she closed the fridge door and looked at you.

 

You scowled, “Can’t you two just knock like normal people?” You grabbed the tea kettle and filled it with water. As you sat the kettle on the burner and turned it on, you shot a glare at Clint. “And that coffee is expensive, Barton.”

 

“Tastes expensive.” He took a drink straight out of the pot.

 

“We don’t knock like normal people because we’re not normal people.” Natasha propped herself up on the counter with a smug look. She gestured to herself. “Former assassin-“ She gestured at Clint. “Former gun for hire.”

 

"Still, it’s polite to knock.” You muttered as you grabbed a mug from your cabinet and a bag of herbal tea from a box. “What are you guys doing here, anyway?”

 

“Checking in on you.” Nat replied, her eyes fixed on you in the way that told you she was inspecting you. “You don’t leave your apartment anymore. You’re not even going on your morning jogs anymore.”

 

“I forget how annoying it is to have friends who are spies.” You mumbled under your breath, then looked at your two best friends. “Look, guys…I’m _fine_ , okay?”

 

“It’s been a month.” Clint stated, a worried look on his face. He had a Mickey Mouse band-aid over his nose, a few more on his arms. “We’re just worried about you, kid.”

 

The kettle whistled, and you turned off the burner as you removed the kettle from the stove. You quietly poured yourself a cup of tea, your eyes focused on your hands as you strained the tea.

 

They had a right to be worried, you supposed. You really hadn’t left your apartment the past few weeks. You hadn’t exactly wanted to. You were so exhausted form your sleepless nights. Every time you fell asleep, your mind replayed the moment of your father’s death. You saw that spear in Coulson’s chest almost every night, plaguing you constantly.

 

“(Y/N),” Clint said gently, and you looked up. You could feel tears in your eyes, and you quickly wiped them away with the sleeve of your sweater before they could fall any further. You looked at one of your closest friends, feeling guilt wash over you. Loki had taken over Clint’s mind, had made him do such horrible things. You couldn’t help but feel guilty over what your mother had done to him.

 

“I don’t know what to do anymore.” You admitted quietly. “SHIELD was all I ever knew, and I quit.”

 

“You know Fury would give you back your job in a heartbeat.” Nat stated gently. “And I think it’d be good for you to go back, get your mind off of...” She trailed off, and you swallowed back a lump forming in your throat. 

 

“But going back…and not seeing my dad like I used to is…I don’t know if I can handle it.” You sat your mug down, not wanting the tea anymore. You crossed your arms as if you were trying to hold yourself together. The past few weeks had been an attempt to keep yourself from falling apart any further. 

 

“You’re strong,” Nat hopped off the counter and put her hands on your shoulders. “If anyone can handle this, it’s you.” She gave you a small smile, something that most people never got the chance to see. You gave her a smile in return, wrapping your arms around her neck. She hugged back, and you sniffled into her shoulder. “Besides, do you know how boring it is out in the field without you?” She held you at arm’s length with a smirk on her face and amusement in her blue eyes. “Barton isn’t much of a conversationalist.”

 

“Hey!” Clint complained, setting down the pot of coffee in his hand, then pointed at Nat. “That’s just rude.”

              

She stuck her tongue out at him, and he snorted a laugh. You managed a small laugh of your own at the familiarity of you two, incredibly weird best friends.

              

You sighed, “I’ll call Uncle Nick in the morning. You guys want to order a few pizzas and watch a movie or something? I’ve missed you guys.”

              

Clint grinned, “I’m always down for pizza. And you should miss me, I’m a delight.”

              

“You're a pain in the ass.” You smirked at him, and laughed when he flipped you off.

 

Clint, being a huge lover of pizza, ordered pizza via an app on his phone while the three of you grabbed a six pack of beer and headed for the living room. You settled on the couch, lounging across it with your feet in Natasha’s lap, her feet in yours. Clint took the love seat, draping himself across it with a small groan.

              

“What happened to you, anyway?” You asked Clint.

              

“Fell off a building into a dumpster.” He muttered, scowling.

 

“Again?” You laughed, and he flipped you off again.

              

“So,” Nat nudged you with her barefoot. She had a mischievous smirk on her face and that instantly put you on high-alert. That look always led to you either getting shot at, or something worse like Nat trying to play matchmaker. “Rogers has been asking about you.”

              

You felt a blush coloring your cheeks as your eyebrows rose in surprise. “What?”

              

“Apparently the good captain is _worried about you_.” Clint sing-songed.

              

You swallowed nervously, picking at a piece of lint on your sweater. You couldn’t help but feel a flutter of excitement at the fact that Steve was thinking about you. You would have been lying if you had said you hadn’t thought about that rather steamy kiss at Steve’s warehouse a week ago. And now to hear he had been thinking of you, had been worried about you…Well, it only made the butterflies in your stomach multiply.

              

“You like him!” Nat smirked, nudging you with her foot again. You pinched her ankle and she kicked you in the thigh. “You two would make a very cute couple.” Nat continued, that mischievous look still in her eyes.

              

“Just…don’t do what you usually do, guys. Please?” You groaned, your head falling back on the arm of the couch. “I can figure out my dating life on my own-“

              

“What dating life?” Clint snickered. You grabbed a throw pillow by your thigh and chucked it at his head. He dodged it, sticking his tongue out at you.

              

“He has a point,” Nat pointed out. “You have a string of one-night stands that led to absolutely nothing. Maybe you could use our help in getting a kiss from Rogers.” She and Clint made kissy faces at you and you shot them both a scowl.

              

“Seeing as I got a kiss all on my own, it doesn’t seem like I need your help.” You muttered.

              

“You kissed Rogers?” Clint shouted. He and Nat were looking at you with wide, surprised eyes that only made your embarrassed blush darken. You tried to sink lower into the couch, praying it would just swallow you whole.

              

“Don’t look so surprised.” You mumbled, pulling your sweater around your tighter.

              

“It’s not that we doubt your abilities, (Y/N),” Nat stated, a smirk on her face. “We just didn’t think Rogers was much of the kissing type. Y’know, being from the 1940's and all.”

              

“Is he a good kisser?” Clint asked curiously. “I mean…I would assume he would be. The guy’s gorgeous.”

              

“Trying to make me jealous, Barton?” Nat flashed him a playful look.

              

“Trust me, he’s got nothing on you, Tasha.” Clint winked at her, and she rolled her eyes affectionately. “I’m just saying, it seems like Steve would be a good kisser, don’t you think?”

              

Nat considered that, then shrugged. “Yeah, I can see it.” She looked to you. “So, is he a good kisser?”

              

You cleared your throat awkwardly, “Yeah, he is. He likes to…um…bite.”

              

Nat and Clint exchanged a surprised glance, then they turned to you with rapt attention.

              

“Exactly how far did you and Rogers go?” Clint asked, a flash of protectiveness in his eyes. “Because I see you as my little sister, and if Rogers did anything you’re uncomfortable with-“

              

“By that blush, I’m assuming she wasn’t uncomfortable with any of it. Were you, (Y/N)?” Nat smirked at you.

              

“It was…nice.” You admitted. “We-uh, we didn’t get very far. We both realized we were only-“ You cleared your throat again. “Doing what we did because we were both hurting. So…I mean…things didn’t get too far.”

              

The buzzer by your door went off, and you had never been so excited to hear that buzzer in your life. 

 

“I want to know more,” Clint stated as he headed for the buzzer. “I need to know if I need to have a heart-to-heart with Rogers-“

              

“You have a heart-to-heart with him, and I’ll kick your ass.” You growled, throwing another throw pillow at the back of his head. It hit him, and he flipped you off over his shoulder before leaving to go retrieve the pizza.

              

You looked at Nat, seeing a look of deep thought on her face. You sighed, a scowl forming on your face as you stared at her.

              

“I’m not gonna get you to just leave this thing alone, am I?”

              

“Nope,” She replied, popping the ‘p’ with a smirk on her face. “I really think you and Rogers would make a cute couple. Not to mention you both have a sense of justice about you that’s annoying as- Ow!” She kicked at you as you pinched her leg again. “Stop pinching me!”


End file.
